Did you know that seniors need regular exercise, just like the rest of us? It’s true! And one of the most enjoyable forms of exercise is yoga. Read on to learn more about the benefits of yoga for seniors!
Yoga helps keep you limber, flexible and calm. Seniors who struggle with various physical and mental challenges often experience anxiety. Yoga helps tremendously with helping them to learn to deep breathe, deal with stress and stay healthier. It’s easy to be shy about trying yoga because people fear the various poses, but you’d be amazed at how beneficial it really is and why seniors across the country are adding yoga to their exercise plan!
How Does Yoga Benefit Older Adults?
1. There are No Age Limitations!
You will see from the onset of taking yoga classes that it can be customized to what you are able to do. Because it’s not some competition for bending and stretching yourself into a pretzel, you’ll find that the yoga teacher will help you do what is comfortable for you. It works for people of all ages.
2. Yoga is Beneficial in All Aspects of Living a Healthy Life
There are three main aspects of living a healthy life: Mind, body, and spirit. Yoga helps seniors reap great benefits in all these areas.
As the title of this article suggests, yoga offers benefits to all three aspects of well-being: mind, body, and spirit.
Mind
Yoga is often thought to work in tandem with meditation. When going into this “down time” your central nervous system is able to be calmer, which in turn allows you to think deeply and clear the mind of any cobwebs. As you learn to put this into practice, you’ll find that yoga is a great stress reliever. Because of the cognitive challenges many seniors suffer from, yoga allows them to understand their surroundings better and think more clearly.
Body
Physical well-being is greatly improved by practicing yoga. The most well-known benefits would be the improved flexibility and strength. When a person improves their physical strength, their overall well-being is affected for the better.
Your lungs are a great example of this. Certain poses such as the Goddess Pose can be combined with Mountain Pose to help your chest and lung area open up, so you breathe more deeply.
Yoga also strengthens bones and can help relieve back pain. Inflammation is the biggest enemy of good health and yoga does wonders for combatting inflammation. This is especially helpful for chronic conditions such as arthritis.
Spirit
Incorporating yoga into your weekly schedule has been proven to help alleviate stress, clear the mind, and calm the spirit. Harmony and balance are the foundation of yoga. You will find that your spirit is nourished as well as your body.
3. Seniors Can Do Yoga Wherever They Choose!
Yoga is loved by millions around the world because it can be done anywhere at any time. Whether you are alone in your bedroom with a yoga mat, or in a class, yoga can be done anywhere. While some seniors enjoy the group setting, others may prefer to practice yoga in a private setting, as a solitary event.
These are just a few of the many benefits that seniors will find with yoga. For more information on how to incorporate yoga into your older adult’s regular exercise plan, contact us today!
Home Helpers of San Rafael is a locally-owned, trusted home health care agency and offers quality, compassionate senior in-home care services including home care assistance, personal care, companion care, respite care, 24-hour live-in care, Alzheimer's & dementia care, Parkinson's care as well as homemaker services in San Rafael, Novato, Mill Valley, San Anselmo, Larkspur, Tiburon, Corte Madera, Sausalito, Belvedere, Ross, and Greenbrae, California.
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